Rate Books and Land Tax
Rate Books
Are a useful source for family history. Kept every year, they record the occupiers and owners of properties, and the amount of rate paid - they can be useful for filling in gaps between census years.
Rate books for Manchester are now available from 1706 to 1941 on Findmypast.co.uk.This database is name indexed but unfortunately it is impossible to search by address. Free access to the Manchester rate books on Findmypast.co.uk is available in any Manchester library.
Please note that rate books for some years do not survive. 1819, 1821, 1824 and 1830 are known to be missing and 1823 and 1829 are incomplete. Rate books between 1901 and 1941 have been kept and indexed for every fifth year only. To check the coverage please use our rate book catalogue for the suburban townships and for Manchester township itself.
If you wish to check a particular address in a rate book between 1706 and 1901, please use the rate books on microfilm. You can book an appointment to view these rate books with one day's notice.
Original rate books are held offsite from 1902 to 1956/1957. You can book an appointment to view these rate books with two weeks notice.
Land Tax
In addition Central Library holds valuation books for the 1910 Land Tax Valuation (Domesday).
As part of its Finance Bill of 1909, the Government introduced a new taxation on land values. For this tax to be implemented, a valuation of all land carried out by the Inland Revenue was necessary, giving rise to the series of records known as the 1910 Domesday Books.
The country was split into 12 and then 14 divisions, each of which in turn was divided into Districts with a District Valuer. These sometimes cut across existing County boundaries. In what is now Greater Manchester, Manchester and Bolton contained a Valuation Divisional Office, while Wigan, Oldham and Stockport had a District Valuer's Office.
The valuation books (ref: GB124.A11) contain a great deal of information of use to the family historian. Of principal interest are the details of the name of occupier, together with his or her address, and the name and address of the actual owner of the property is also given, if different from the occupier.
In addition to giving details of owners and occupiers, information is also given about the property itself. This may be described in terms of house, shop, cottage, inn, etc., and its extent in terms of acres, roods, perches and yards is noted, as are both the gross and rateable values.
The valuation books are arranged by property number, which is not the most convenient way for family historians. However, most sets of books have a street index, and the forms from which the books are drawn, are arranged by street.